In a sense, HG Wells' Time Machine symbolized all future technology. It also enabled the Time Traveler to experience one ultimate outcome of technological control of the environment.
However, contemporary fiction in the twentieth century could also address change. Dornford Yates' The Berry Scene (1947), surveying the period covered by the author's previous seven Berry Books, begins in 1907 with the Pleydells hiring their first chauffer-driven motor car. The end is in sight for their beloved horses and stables.
4 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Perhaps not so oddly, the last sentence you wrote here: "The end is in sight for their beloved horses and stables" reminded me of S.M. Stirling's discussion of the Great Manure Crisis of the late 19th century. The greatest cities of the UK, Europe, and the US were being overwhelmed by the huge amounts of manure dropped by the horses and mules needed for transporting goods and people around the cities. It was a true health and environmental disaster. To say nothing of the additional problem posed by how to dispose of thousands of dead horses/mules!
Most of these problems could have been avoided if carriage companies and other businesses using horses had not pressured the UK parliament to pass laws making it impossible to use the kind of steam powered automobiles technically possible by the 1820's or 1830's. The Great Manure Crisis caused so many problems that it was impossible to suppress the "horseless carriages" which came into widespread use by 1900. Cars have their own problems, I agree, but they were a godsend in many ways, enabling the replacing of animals to transporting goods and people to and around cities. Most horses were gone from the most advanced cities by about 1920 (and good riddance).
And what might be the consequences of using the AIRCARS we see in some of Poul Anderson's stories (e.g., ENSIGN FLANDRY)? And how would they be fueled? And I would far rather we did not use petroleum products for that! Why shouldn't aircars not be powered by nuclear energy provided by small slugs or pellets of uranium? That would eliminate a good amount of WEIGHT, I think. And a computerized Traffic Control system for actually piloting aircars might mitigate the problem caused by people who are not PILOTS using flying machines. With provisions made allowing emergency responders, the police, and military overriding TrafCon when necessary.
Sean
Kaor, Sean!
Small slugs of uranium won’t normally provide much power. Now, if you get several small slugs of enriched uranium close to each other, probably with a moderator surrounding the individual slugs, then neutrons from one slug can split atoms in another, releasing more energy; in short, you have a nuclear reactor. However, putting one in an aircar could cause problems, because the reactor with its shielding and its controls is heavy, and because radioactive byproducts of the nuclear fission might be spilled if the air car crashes. Besides, will the aircar carry a time of nuclear technicians, or will AI enable the operation of the reactor to be automated?
Best Regards,
Nicholas Rosen
Kaor, Nicholas!
Many thanks for your informative criticism! If ground and air vehicles are ever to get away from needing to petroleum products for fuel, SOMETHING will have to replace them. So, why not some kind of mini nuclear reactor for powering them? Preferably with LIGHT shielding and controls. And the nuclear fuel used should be in such small small amounts that little or no harm will be caused by spills.
I know! I'm setting DEMANDINGLY high parameters for nuclear powered aircars! And I can imagine an AI superintending the Traffic Control system controlling these air cars.
Regards! Sean
I see some of the problems with nuclear powered cars, Nicholas Rosen mentioned, being potentially solvable. However, I don't see any way to make the shielding light. You need a meter or more of something such as water or concrete to get the neutron and gamma radiation down to reasonably safe levels. So directly nuclear powered transportation is for boats which can be made big enough to contain the reactor plus shielding. Possible exception for spacecraft in which the shielding can be put on just one side of the reactor, with people & most equipment on the other side of the shield.
Indirectly nuclear powered transport can be electric rail with the electricity coming from stationary nuclear reactors. See the rail system in France or the Toronto subway. Also trolley busses with electricity coming from double wires overhead.
Battery powered vehicles can be charged from nuclear generated electricity. I'm unimpressed with current battery tech for such purposes. I do see lithium-air batteries as possibly getting close to the energy density of hydrocarbon fuels. Aside from that, maybe highways could have overhead wires and cars with a modest battery range could be continuously charged until the car goes onto side roads.
Another possibility is using nuclear heat & electricity to extract CO2 & hydrogen from air and seawater to make liquid fuels. Whether that can be done reasonably cheaply is another matter.
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